It is the 21st Century, the digital age and all. So I was rather amazed that there was no way for political junkies to see the entire Senate Democratic debate in Pendleton unless they attended the darned thing - either live or recorded.

Finally, however, the debate is online. Candidate Steve Novick posted it on his web site, which is a smart move. If nothing else, it drives a little more traffic to his site.

Speaking of traffic, Novick's rival, House Speaker Jeff Merkley, is okay after a scary crash Thursday night. From the Associated Press:

Oregon House Speaker Jeff Merkley, who's running for the Democratic U.S. Senate nomination, escaped injury late Thursday when a car he was riding in hit a patch of ice and rolled over on Oregon Highway 20 west of Sisters, a campaign spokesman said.

Merkley, 51, and an aide were en route from Salem to Redmond for a campaign event when the accident occurred, spokesman Russ Kelley said.

"They were both pretty shaken up, as you could imagine, but there were no apparent injuries. Both were wearing seat belts," Kelley said.

According to Kelley, the car driven by the campaign aide was roughly 15 miles west of Sisters when it hit some ice, skidded across the oncoming lanes, hit a snowbank on the highway's westbound shoulder and flipped over, landing on its roof.